Barkley made the remarks on TNT and left Shaq in stitches
Charles Barkley criticized the New Orleans Pelicans on Saturday as they lost the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 3 of their playoff series.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Josh Giddey and Jalen Williams each had at least 20 points as Oklahoma City won the game, 106-85. The Thunder are nearing their first playoff series win since they made it to the NBA Finals in 2016.
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Charles Barkley on air before the Final Four semifinal game between the Purdue Boilermakers and the North Carolina State Wolfpack at State Farm Stadium on April 6, 2024, in Glendale, Arizona. (Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
As NBA fans would jokingly say, the Pelicans are headed for a vacation in Cancun, Mexico. But the Pelicans were going somewhere worse, Barkley asserted on TNT, because of how badly the team played in the series loss to Oklahoma City. The Basketball Hall of Famer said they were headed for Galveston, Texas.
"Where they going, Chuck?" Shaquille O’Neal asked.
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Kenny Smith, Charles Barkley and Michael Wilbon before the game between the New Orleans Pelicans and Los Angeles Lakers on Dec. 7, 2023, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. (Mike Kirschbaum/NBAE via Getty Images)
"Galveston," Barkley responded, leading Shaq to burst out laughing. "That dirty a-- water. We not even gonna send them to Cancun. We’re gonna send them to Galveston where that dirty a-- water be washing up on the shore. You people think they’re at the beach.
"We ain’t sending you to Cancun. Y’all quit. Y’all get down to Galveston. C’mon man. They didn’t even try, man. We ain’t giving them no plane ticket to the beach. We send their a-- to Galveston, Texas, right where that dirty water washes up on the beach. They can’t even get in the water."
If Oklahoma City wins, they will face the winner of the series between the Los Angeles Clippers and Dallas Mavericks.
Gordon Hayward of the Oklahoma City Thunder embraces Jalen Williams and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander during the playoff game against the Pelicans on April 27, 2024, at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans. (Layne Murdoch Jr./NBAE via Getty Images)
Dallas leads the series against Los Angeles, 2-1.
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Ryan Gaydos is a senior editor for Fox News Digital.
